Kenya: Election Commission Denies Piracy Of Its Computer System

The Kenyan electoral commission gives the results of the presidential election. Outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta leads 54 per cent of the vote, against his rival Raila Odinga, 44 per cent. The opponent has Tuesday rejected the results and denounced computer piracy. The tension immediately rose one notch in the street, with several deaths, but also on social networks. This Wednesday evening, the electoral commission denies the piracy of its system.

The Kenyan Electoral Commission on Wednesday denied that its voice counting system has been the subject of computer piracy, as the opposition said, which on that basis rejected the provisional results of Tuesday’s general elections. ” Our election management system is secure. There was no internal or external interference with our system at any time before, during or after the vote, “Ezra Chiloba, the Commission’s Chief Executive Officer, told Ezra Chiloba.

“People are asking why we are late to centralize the minutes. We compile the results of six elections at a time. So if a riding contains 100 offices, that means that we will receive 600 Urns. It’s no wonder 12 hours after the vote, there’s still a lot of work to do. So it’s not nothing. But you will agree with me that we have already accomplished a lot in the last three days. So be patient, we really want to finish this process as quickly as possible. ”

Earlier on Wednesday, violence broke out in places. In the capital, Nairobi, there are two deaths – two people who were shot dead in the Mathare shantytown. According to an on-site investigator, one of the victims, a man armed with a machete, was shot while walking toward a police officer.

In eastern Kenya, in Tana River County, two men were also killed by the police. According to the latter, they had just attacked a polling station where the counting operations were continuing. A number of assailants managed to escape. In the Kissi district, one person was killed, according to Kenyan media.

Strong tensions in Kisumu

Tensions were also high in Kisumu, western Kenya. About twenty policemen and two water cannons remained stationed all day at the entrance to the shanty town of Kondele, a popular district of the city, in front of barricades and burning tires. They were advancing into the main street whenever the demonstrators armed with stones were heading towards them.

County police chief Titus Yoma told RFI that at least a hundred young people wanted to access the city center to destroy properties. ” We stopped them, ” he concluded.

There were tear gas and warning shots. But so far no injured, and no major incident. But in Kisii south of Kisumu, a protester would have lost his life. Wednesday evening, in any case, calm reigned in the rest of the city, even if the apprehension was palpable.

On the side of the young protesters, the tone is hard. They take up slogans used in 2007, during the disputed victory of Mwai Kibaki: ” No Raila No Peace “. All were waiting in the evening for a watchword from their leader. If he tells us to accept the results, we will accept them, if not, we can create chaos.

Similar situation in the slums of Nairobi. Mainly at Mathare, north of the capital. Two people were killed by the police today.

Kenyan Internet users fear bloodshed

Use the law rather than the street: the message comes back very often since Wednesday morning on social networks. Internet users, in fact, call Raila Odinga to choose the most peaceful route. They obviously fear the bloodbath.

Rachel writes on Facebook: ” Preach peace and not war. We can not go back to the dark days when we turned against each other. Because you refused to accept the results. Go to court “. Reference to the violence of 2007, when Raila Odinga had denounced the results of the poll. He will do so six years later.

A twittos, who presents himself as a partisan, warns his candidate that he has done his only duty, to vote, but that he should no longer be counted on to demonstrate.

This situation, many Kenyans seem to have tired of it. Kakembo looks forward to the day when an African opposition leader will accept his defeat at an election. Raila Odinga also obviously has his fans unswerving on social networks, but they also call him to restraint, at least the time of counting the minutes.